Monterey County Art, Culture & Media Digest

I thought my journalism and others’ could change policy, perhaps even inspire a New Deal-style response equal to the challenge. Such was my naiveté.

It quickly became clear that Elon Musk’s SpaceX was responsible for the show. The lights were a Falcon 9 rocket carrying 22 new Starlink satellites into orbit. The rocket blasted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 7:30 p.m., and it’s trail was visible from Los Angeles to Joshua Tree National Park.

Monterey Bay residents Frans Lanting and Chris Eckstrom, renowned for their work documenting nature, have opened a new exhibit titled "Bay of Life: From Wind To Whales" at California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) .

200 laptop computers were donated to Youth Alliance by AT&T, Monterey Peninsula Foundation and Human-I-T, for distribution to Hollister and Gilroy residents lacking "digital basics".

The March 11 edition of the Los Angeles Times print edition will be its last at the Los Angeles Times Olympic printing plant in Los Angeles.

Foundation debuts a new informational video about the Western Flyer boat, narrated by actor and comedian Nick Offerman, about the history of the 83-year old fishing vessel featured in John Steinbeck's “The Log from the Sea of Cortez.” View the full video at WesternFlyer.org.

The Seaside City Council will consider implementing new signs and additional lighting to better welcome, inform and enlighten folks.

Journalism and democracy are undeniably intertwined. As the late media critic James Carey put it, “No journalism, no democracy; but, equally, no democracy, no journalism.”

UC Merced will be highlighted on an Amazon Prime show that showcases universities around the world.

The Grateful Dead have broken the record for the most Top 40 albums to chart on the Billboard 200.

She toured the world wowing audiences, and she captured the public’s imagination for decades. No, not Taylor Swift; Ellen Beach Yaw, also known as Lark Ellen.

James Dean’s last stop before he died in a car crash was at Blackwell’s Corner, a gas station in rural Kern County. His memory isn’t the draw it once was.

A shrink-wrapped Endeavour was hoisted and then carefully placed in its final location at the still-under-construction Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center.

The proposal aims to help working artists become arts teachers in elementary schools.

A combination of tax credits, revenue sharing and coupons could bring stability, writes Steven Waldman, president of Rebuild Local News.

Pasadena is the only California city named a travel destination for 2024 by The New York Times. This comes despite the Los Angeles-area city being just the 45th-largest city in the state.

Philadelphia-based Audacy, which has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with $1.9 billion in debts, owns six radio stations in the Bay Area. These include 95.7 The Game, KCBS and 102.1 Jams.

Under new state laws, five cities will test cameras to catch speeding drivers and cruising bans will be lifted statewide. The first is supposed to improve road safety, but critics of the second say it will endanger the public.

State audits of the University of California and the California State University found both systems have failed to comply with decades-old state and federal laws mandating the return of Native ancestral remains and cultural artifacts. Only UCLA and Cal State Long Beach have returned a majority of their collections.

Christmas at Closter Park returns to Salinas for its third year with different family activities live performances, arts and crafts, real snow and raffled Christmas trees, which sponsors decorate and donate.

With its hilly terrain, parts of Los Angeles aren’t always the easiest to build in. But that didn’t stop an architect from building a unique structure in Silver Lake.

The San Diego Union-Tribune, which has operated for 154 years, sold to controversial Alden Global Capital last year. It’s not looking great for the paper’s future.

Robert Irwin, an artist and MacArthur genius grant recipient, died in San Diego at 95 on Oct. 25. Michael Govan, who heads the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, offers a colorful retrospective on Irwin's work.

Looking at a dearth of accessible textbooks reflecting the diversity of Chicano/Latino/Mexican American/Latinx lives, two local professors set out to write one.

Through this new program, artists, culture bearers, and California Native American tribes will be eligible to receive funding to create artwork throughout state and local parks.

Written by Center for Biological Diversity scientist Tiffany Yap and illustrated by artist Meital Smith, “Tales of the Urban Wild: A Puma’s Journey” takes the reader through diverse habitats, across busy freeways and inside science labs to learn about one mountain lion’s survival story.

The Makerspace at CSUMB is packed with students eager to express their creativity. While it’s one of the most popular resources on campus, it struggles to keep up with demand due to a lack of funding.

Ritchie Lovejoy wrote a novel more than 80 years ago, and he was able to do it because of John Steinbeck’s faith in his talent. That novel, “Taku Wind,” finally got published last month, albeit in a very limited edition—24 copies.

Salinas, in the heart of California's agricultural landscape, has been a magnet for murals for several decades. Breathtaking new ones have just been added to three freeway underpasses.

KSQD, the community radio station run by Natural Bridges Media, successfully fundraised to purchase two new radio licenses.

When Libbie Jameson noticed a lack of recognition for California State University, Monterey Bay students’ creativity, she came up with a business plan to serve local artists.

Could Pitt's plans for 'a peaceful life' including spending time at Seaward, the castle-like, oceanside home he purchased in the Carmel Highlands last summer?